Today’s South Bend Tribune has a nice article on Notre Dame’s all time leading rusher Autry Denson in which Denson admits to becoming a Notre Dame Football junkie:
“It’s better for me to be there than watch it at home,” he said. “When I’m at home, I have this Notre Dame room, and it’s just me and my son (Autry). And when the game’s on, no one can call me. No one can talk to me. No one is allowed to come into the room.
“I was talking to (former teammate) Ron Powlus a couple of weeks ago. I told him I’ve turned into the guy we used to make fun of. I’m a Notre Dame fanatic. I can’t help myself. I’m hopeless.”
It’s great to see former players who still have this much passion for the University. As die hard fans we sometimes forget that some of the players who play for the Irish aren’t anywhere near as obsessed enthusiastic as we are towards Notre Dame football.
The rest of the article paints a very positive picture of Denson and how he gave up his dream of playing professional football for the betterment of his family.
“It was easy, really,” said Notre Dame’s all-time leading rusher, whose final days as a pro were spent as a Montreal Alouette in 2004. “I have always been family-oriented. I had a daughter my senior year in high school, so I always understood responsibilities. I had a son my senior year at Notre Dame.
“Family life was fine when I was playing in Miami, but when you start to go a few months in Cleveland, a year in Chicago, two years in Detroit, my kids didn’t need to be moving around like that. This is their time.”
With his playing days over, Denson makes his living as a financial adviser primarily for professional athletes.
“The reason I got into this is there’s such a need for it,” Denson said. “You get a guy who’s 19, 20, 21 years old. You throw a ton of money at them, and there’s no training. Athletes have the worst spending habits, and they get a bad rap for it.
On top of being a Notre Dame football nut, Denson is putting his Notre Dame degree to good use. Stories like this about former players never get old.
